1842-1920
Thomas Armor Crooks was born on a hillside farm in Hanover Township, Beaver County, Pennsylvania, on November 28, 1842, the son of Henry Crooks and Margaret Springer. He had 9 siblings: Margaret (1836), Susan (1836), Nancy Jane (1838), Andrew (1840), William (1845), John S. (1847), Amanda (1849), Henry Jr. (1852) and Mary Martha (1855). Susan and Henry Jr. both died in early childhood.
At age 21, he joined the Hopewell Presbyterian Church. Shortly after the close of the Civil War, he moved to Barton County, Missouri, where he farmed and taught a rural school for 4 years. While there, he sold land in Barton County to his brothers Andrew and John.
By 1871, he was residing in Gilman, Illinois, where he opened a general store with his brother Andrew. Andrew had enlisted in the 149th Pennsylvania Volunteers and fought at Gettysburg, where he was wounded and subsequently lost his right leg below the knee. While still enlisted, Andrew attended the Iron City Business College in Pittsburgh. Andrew was the general manager of the store and did the bookkeeping. Thomas was the "legs".
On July 31, 1878, Thomas married Meroa Louisa Yeomans of nearby Onarga, in a double wedding with Meroa's brother Edwin James Yeomans. Meroa's brother Charles was a witness at the wedding. Thomas and Meroa had 3 children: Charles Henry (1883), Helen Redfield (1885) and Fred Raymond (1888).
Thomas and Meroa were active in the First Presbyterian Church of Gilman and their children joined the church when young. In addition, Thomas served as a church elder from 1885-1897 and as church treasurer. He also served as clerk of the Gilman Board of Education for over 25 years, was frequently secretary of the board and often took the school census. Although he and Andrew were not noted as joiners, he did belong to the Modern Woodmen of America, a fraternal society that sought to protect families when the breadwinner died.
The stored owned by Thomas and Andrew, A. Crooks & Brother, sold dry goods, clothing, groceries, hardware, cattle feed and farm supplies. When the store closed late on Saturdays, they brought home the produce that was close to too-ripe and canned it late into the night. Since money was scarce, they frequently had to accept farm commodities in exchange for merchandise or extend credit to customers. Sometimes, they accepted money from customers as investments, with the intent of later returning the money with interest. The Gilman store closed in 1897 during a financial panic in the country and they declared bankruptcy.
After the store closed, Thomas worked as a day laborer on Frank Mann's farm and also worked in a nursery. He raised chickens on his lot, had roses on 3 sides of the front lawn area, grew cherry trees and grew sweet potatoes in a trough below the bay window. In 1900, he lived with his wife, 3 children and mother-in-law, Sarah Haines Yeomans in the home he owned on Commerce Street. After Meroa's death in 1917, he probably remained in his home until November 1919, when he went to live with his daughter Helen in Loda. Thomas died March 11, 1920, age 77, due to cancer of the pancreas and liver. He is buried in Onarga Cemetery near his wife Meroa.
Dad's cousins remember Thomas as quiet, but knowing how to make his presence known. He was polite and very devout. For one of his granddaughters' birthdays, he sent a bushel basket of cherries to Paxton with roses on top for the birthday girl.
Saturday, March 17, 2018
Meroa Louisa Yeomans: Literary College Graduate
1848-1917
Meroa Louisa Yeomans was born in Kortright, New York, in the Catskills, on February 24, 1848, the daughter of James Yeomans Jr. and Sarah Haines Redfield. She had 4 brothers: Albert Redfield (1845), Charles Howard (1846), James Edwin (1850) and Frederick Wright (1854). Albert died just before he turned 10 and Fred died when he was 21 years old.
In the fall of 1851, Meroa's family moved to Illinois by oxcart and boat and settled at Squaw Grove (Hinckley today). Pioneer life involved significant privations and she and her brothers were largely educated by their mother, who had taught school back in New York. In 1855, her oldest brother Albert died. A few years later, they moved to Sugar Grove and thence to Peotone and finally, in 1866, to Onarga, Illinois.
Meroa spent a year at Ripon College in Wisconsin. She later attended Grand Prairie Seminary in Onarga and was a member of the first graduating class in 1871. She received her diploma in the classical course on the same day that her brother Charles graduated from Ripon College in law. At the time of the 1871 Great Chicago Fire, she taught at a college for women in Kankakee. She, along with other citizens, sent one meal a day to those stricken by the fire in Chicago. After teaching at Kankakee, she taught for six years in the Gilman schools.
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| Meroa as a younger woman |
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| Charlie Crooks, Helen Crooks McFarland, William McFarland, Meroa Yeomans Crooks |
Meroa Louisa Yeomans was born in Kortright, New York, in the Catskills, on February 24, 1848, the daughter of James Yeomans Jr. and Sarah Haines Redfield. She had 4 brothers: Albert Redfield (1845), Charles Howard (1846), James Edwin (1850) and Frederick Wright (1854). Albert died just before he turned 10 and Fred died when he was 21 years old.
In the fall of 1851, Meroa's family moved to Illinois by oxcart and boat and settled at Squaw Grove (Hinckley today). Pioneer life involved significant privations and she and her brothers were largely educated by their mother, who had taught school back in New York. In 1855, her oldest brother Albert died. A few years later, they moved to Sugar Grove and thence to Peotone and finally, in 1866, to Onarga, Illinois.
Meroa spent a year at Ripon College in Wisconsin. She later attended Grand Prairie Seminary in Onarga and was a member of the first graduating class in 1871. She received her diploma in the classical course on the same day that her brother Charles graduated from Ripon College in law. At the time of the 1871 Great Chicago Fire, she taught at a college for women in Kankakee. She, along with other citizens, sent one meal a day to those stricken by the fire in Chicago. After teaching at Kankakee, she taught for six years in the Gilman schools.
Meroa joined the Methodist church of Squaw Grove when she was 8 years old, but became affiliated with the Presbyterian church after she married Thomas Armor Crooks on July 31, 1878, in Onarga. Thomas and Meroa had 3 children: Charles Henry (1883), Helen Redfield (1885) and Fred Raymond (1888)... Meroa had a deep interest in missionary work, sending barrels of home-canned fruit, clothing and magazines for over a quarter of a century. She was also interested in the Ladies Aid society at the church.
Meroa was also interested in the library and the Fortnightly club. Fortnightly clubs were founded in the 1800's as a place for women to have an intellectual life! The Gilman Lore stated that she had considerable literary training and ability as a writer, and her papers were widely read and sometimes published.
On June 9, 1917, at the age of 69, Meroa died in Gilman, Illinois, of bronchial pneumonia. Anemia was mentioned as a secondary cause of death. At the time of her death, she appeared to have some property in her name only. In addition, she had notes due, one note being for $150 she had loaned to her son-in-law Will McFarland at no interest. In addition, all of her household goods are itemized including bedsteads, a bureau, washstands, a rest chair, rockers, 3 wash boards, 1 melodeon, 1 book case and books, 1 sewing machine, stoves and dishes.
She is buried in Onarga cemetery, next to her parents, the two brothers that died young and her husband! I have visited this cemetery numerous times on the way to the Chicago area with my husband.
Sarah Haines Redfield: Teacher with a Pilgrim Pedigree
1821-1904
Sarah Haines Redfield was born in Stamford, in Delaware County, New York, on December 8, 1821, the daughter of James Grinnell Redfield and Susan Barlow. She was the third of 11 children. Her siblings were Albert (1818), Sophronia (1820), Mary Elizabeth (1823), Joseph Barlow (1825), Susan (1828), Zilpha (1830), Esther Meroa (1831), Harriet Newell (1833), James (1836) and Priscilla (1838). All of her siblings reached adulthood and married. Her older brother Albert actually married his half first-cousin!
Sarah Haines Redfield is our link to the Pilgrims, John Alden and Priscilla Mullins, her 5-great-grandparents. The family moved from Plymouth, Massachusetts, to Rhode Island, and then to Saybrook, Connecticut. In 1794, James Redfield Sr. moved from Connecticut to Delaware County, New York. At an early age, James Sr. was a cabin boy on an American privateer near the close of the Revolutionary War. The earliest known Redfield ancestor was William Redfin, our 8-great-grandfather, who was born in England in about 1620 and came to the Boston area in the 1630's.
Sarah's father, James Grinnell Redfield, served as a lower-level officer in the War of 1812. Although he lived on a farm, his primary occupation was making and selling clothing. In addition, he served as supervisor of Stamford, an assemblyman representing Delaware County, superintendent of the poor, and Justice of the Peace. The family initially lived in Stamford, but then moved to Delhi, about 20 miles away. According to oral family traditions, Sarah taught school.
On October 12, 1843, Sarah Haines Redfield married James Yeomans. About 8 years later, they moved to Illinois and raised their family! They moved by oxcart, settling first in Squaw Grove, then Sugar Grove, then Peotone and finally, in 1866, they moved to Onarga, where they made their home. (See blog for James Yeomans Jr.)
When her husband died in 1876 in Onarga, Sarah was only 54 years old and she lived for 28 more years. Initially, her daughter Meroa, who was single, or her son, Edwin James, widowed, must have lived with her. Two years later, Meroa and Edwin both married in Onarga in a double wedding. By at least 1880, Sarah was living with her brother, Joseph Barlow Redfield, in Chicago, Illinois, probably because Joseph's wife had died in 1879. Joseph was quite successful and is listed variously as an auditor and assistant secretary for Chicago and North Western Railroad and as a lawyer. By 1900, though, Joseph is living with his recently married daughter and Sarah is living with her daughter, Meroa, in Gilman. Dad's Aunt Helen remembers Sarah as a stickler for doing things a particular way, e.g., drying the dishes, and thought she was a bit tyrannical! Aunt Dorothy remembers that when the Redfield Family visited them, they would give each child a dollar!
Sarah no doubt had a major educational influence on her grandson Charles (our grandfather) and his siblings! On June 28, 1904, she wrote a letter to Charlie on his way to the Philippines and two weeks after his 21st birthday. "I was delighted to get (personally) a letter from you. Hope I shall get more such... We are much interested in what you tell us of far off lands. Thank you for the small coin. It is a curiosity." She mentions expecting to go to Waukegan and Chicago in a few weeks, probably to visit her son and brother. On July 8, she died in Waukegan, age 82. She never received any more letters from Charlie, but Charlie cherished his last letter from Sarah and Dad had a copy of that letter after all these years.
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| Letter written by Sarah Haines (Redfield) Yeomans to her grandson, Charlie Crooks Page 1 |
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| Page 2 |
Sarah Haines Redfield was born in Stamford, in Delaware County, New York, on December 8, 1821, the daughter of James Grinnell Redfield and Susan Barlow. She was the third of 11 children. Her siblings were Albert (1818), Sophronia (1820), Mary Elizabeth (1823), Joseph Barlow (1825), Susan (1828), Zilpha (1830), Esther Meroa (1831), Harriet Newell (1833), James (1836) and Priscilla (1838). All of her siblings reached adulthood and married. Her older brother Albert actually married his half first-cousin!
Sarah Haines Redfield is our link to the Pilgrims, John Alden and Priscilla Mullins, her 5-great-grandparents. The family moved from Plymouth, Massachusetts, to Rhode Island, and then to Saybrook, Connecticut. In 1794, James Redfield Sr. moved from Connecticut to Delaware County, New York. At an early age, James Sr. was a cabin boy on an American privateer near the close of the Revolutionary War. The earliest known Redfield ancestor was William Redfin, our 8-great-grandfather, who was born in England in about 1620 and came to the Boston area in the 1630's.
Sarah's father, James Grinnell Redfield, served as a lower-level officer in the War of 1812. Although he lived on a farm, his primary occupation was making and selling clothing. In addition, he served as supervisor of Stamford, an assemblyman representing Delaware County, superintendent of the poor, and Justice of the Peace. The family initially lived in Stamford, but then moved to Delhi, about 20 miles away. According to oral family traditions, Sarah taught school.
On October 12, 1843, Sarah Haines Redfield married James Yeomans. About 8 years later, they moved to Illinois and raised their family! They moved by oxcart, settling first in Squaw Grove, then Sugar Grove, then Peotone and finally, in 1866, they moved to Onarga, where they made their home. (See blog for James Yeomans Jr.)
When her husband died in 1876 in Onarga, Sarah was only 54 years old and she lived for 28 more years. Initially, her daughter Meroa, who was single, or her son, Edwin James, widowed, must have lived with her. Two years later, Meroa and Edwin both married in Onarga in a double wedding. By at least 1880, Sarah was living with her brother, Joseph Barlow Redfield, in Chicago, Illinois, probably because Joseph's wife had died in 1879. Joseph was quite successful and is listed variously as an auditor and assistant secretary for Chicago and North Western Railroad and as a lawyer. By 1900, though, Joseph is living with his recently married daughter and Sarah is living with her daughter, Meroa, in Gilman. Dad's Aunt Helen remembers Sarah as a stickler for doing things a particular way, e.g., drying the dishes, and thought she was a bit tyrannical! Aunt Dorothy remembers that when the Redfield Family visited them, they would give each child a dollar!
Sarah no doubt had a major educational influence on her grandson Charles (our grandfather) and his siblings! On June 28, 1904, she wrote a letter to Charlie on his way to the Philippines and two weeks after his 21st birthday. "I was delighted to get (personally) a letter from you. Hope I shall get more such... We are much interested in what you tell us of far off lands. Thank you for the small coin. It is a curiosity." She mentions expecting to go to Waukegan and Chicago in a few weeks, probably to visit her son and brother. On July 8, she died in Waukegan, age 82. She never received any more letters from Charlie, but Charlie cherished his last letter from Sarah and Dad had a copy of that letter after all these years.
James Yeomans, Jr.: Illinois Settler by Oxcart
1817-1876
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| Ox-cart example; |
James Yeomans was born in Delhi, in Delaware County, New York, on March 14, 1817, the son of James Yeoman and either Jane Stout or Jane Munger. (An 's' was later added to the surname.) He was one of 10 children, his siblings being Ellen, George S., Jane, Francis, Harriet, Margaret, Elizabeth, David Galacia, and Peter. Not much is known about his siblings, although at least one sister moved to Philadelphia, which is where his father, James Yeoman, Sr., died. We actually have a photo of his father and know that James Yeoman Sr. served as Justice of the Peace. His grandfather, Francis Yeoman, was born in Berwick-on-Tweed, on the border between Scotland and England, and subsequently served in the Revolutionary War as a sergeant. Francis Yeoman is our earliest known Yeoman ancestor and is our 4-great-grandfather.
James Yeomans Jr. grew up on a farm in Delaware County, New York. On October 12, 1843, he married Sarah Haines Redfield in Delhi. The minister was Theophilus Redfield, no doubt a relative of the bride. Their first 4 children were all born in New York: Albert Redfield (1845), Charles Howard (1846), Meroa Louisa (1848) and Edwin James (1850).
In the fall of 1851, James moved his family to Illinois by oxcart and boat and settled in Squaw Grove (Hinckley today), about 60 miles west of Chicago. The first post office wasn't established until 1853. In 1854, his youngest child, Frederick Wright, was born. In 1855, his eldest child, Albert, died. A few years later, the family moved to Sugar Grove, about 10 miles to the east. In 1861, they moved to Peotone, about 75 miles to the southeast, and in 1866, they moved to Onarga, where they made their home. In 1868, James bought both farm land and a cemetery plot. At the time of the 1870 census, his real estate was valued at $13,000. James' primary occupation was farmer, but in those days they often had multiple ways of earning a living.
On January 16, 1876, the youngest child of James and Sarah, Frederick Wright, died at 21 years of age. About 2 months later, on March 9, James himself died, at the age of 58. Cause of death is not known, but James and Frederick may have died from the same infectious disease. At the time of his death, James owned 9 pieces of land and a Norman colt. In addition, he was owed money by several individuals, including his son Edwin.
James and Sarah raised fairly successful children, no doubt aided by Sarah's teaching skills! Their eldest child, Charles, worked as a lawyer and was the executor of James' estate. Their daughter Meroa was a college graduate and taught school prior to her marriage. Their youngest surviving child, Edwin James, worked both as a carpenter and as a farmer.
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